Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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42 DECEMBER 2018 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED ND SPORTS MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY No. 10 Notre Dame finished 14th out of 31 teams at the NCAA Champion- ships Nov. 17 in Madison, Wis. Freshman Danny Kilrea led the way for the Fighting Irish, completing the 10-kilometer race in 29:55.2 for a 33rd-place individual finish to earn All-America honors. Sophomore Yared Nuguse (59th, 30:13.6) and senior Anthony Williams (97th, 30:35.80) also finished among the top 100. "I could not be more proud of the progress our men's team has made over the last couple of years," head coach Matt Sparks said. "To go from a program that could barely finish in the top-14 in the regional meet to finishing 14th in the country is a testament to the trust and respect these men have for Coach [Sean] Carlson and each other." WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY The No. 18 Fighting Irish came in 10th out of 31 teams at the NCAA Cham- pionships Nov. 17 in Madison, Wis. Senior Anna Rohrer set the pace for Notre Dame, finishing 10th with a time of 20:32.90 on the six-kilometer course to earn All-America accolades for the third time in her career (she also finished sixth in 2015 and third in 2016). Senior Jessica Harris (37th, 20:32.90) likewise earned All-America recog- nition, while freshman Jackie Gaughan (64th, 20:47.80) and senior Rachel DaDamio (84th, 20:58.70) finished in the top 100. "Our women that competed today ran like the veteran team they are," Sparks said. "We had a very solid performance across the top five. Graduate students Jessica Harris and Sydney Foreman especially rose to the occasion." HOCKEY (7-4-1 OVERALL, 4-2-0 BIG TEN) No. 8 Notre Dame picked up a pair of conference wins at Michigan State Nov. 16-17. The Fighting Irish opened the series with a 3-1 win over the Spartans, with goals coming from senior forward Joe Wegwerth, freshman forward Cam Burke and freshman forward Graham Slaggert. With the goal, Wegwerth tied his career high for goals (seven) and assists (11) in a season. Notre Dame completed the two-game sweep the following night with a 2-1 triumph. The decisive goal came off the stick of junior forward Cal Burke at the 14:55 mark of the second period. Up next for the Irish was a single contest versus Northern Michigan Nov. 27 and a two-game set versus Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Nov. 30-Dec. 1. MEN'S SOCCER (10-6-4 OVERALL, 4-3-1 ACC) The No. 7 Fighting Irish advanced to the round of 16 in the NCAA Champi- onship Nov. 18 with an 11-10 shootout win over Michigan in a game that was scoreless through 90 minutes of regulation and a 10-minute sudden death overtime period. Both the Wolverines and Irish netted the first five attempts in the shootout before missing their sixth shots. The teams traded good goals over the next five attempts for a 10-10 tie heading into what would turn out to be the decisive 11th round. After Junior goalkeeper Duncan Turnbull turned away the Wolverines' attempt, senior defender Felicien Dumas put his attempt in the back of the net to send the Irish to the next round. Head coach Chad Riley said even though games like this rarely happen, his team was prepared. "We talk so much this time of the year about mentality," Riley said. "We were focused and confident heading into the shootout. We had prepared for PKs so we knew we would be confident during that phase." Notre Dame will face No. 10 Virginia in the round of 16 Nov. 25 in South Bend. MEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING (3-4 OVERALL, 2-1 ACC) No. 18 Notre Dame took second place at the Ohio State Fall Invitational Nov. 15-17 in Columbus, Ohio. The final day of competition was highlighted by 12 top-five Irish finishes with three of them coming in first place overall. Sophomore Zach Yeadon started the Irish men out strong in the finals of the 200 butterfly, finishing with an NCAA-best time of 14:39.60 to take first. Sophomore Sadler McKeen took silver in the event to give the Irish the top two finishers in the men's race. Junior Jack Montesi also recorded a first-place finish for the Irish men in the 200 backstroke, finishing in 1:43.74. The Irish will return to the pool Jan. 12 for a road matchup against Iowa. WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING (7-0-1 OVERALL, 4-0-1 ACC) The No. 13 Fighting Irish took second place at the Ohio State Fall Invita- tional Nov. 15-17 in Columbus, Ohio. Notre Dame placed two in the top-five of the 200 butterfly when senior Nikki Smith finished third with a program- best time of 1:55.23. Smith barely beat out freshman teammate Luciana Thomas, who took fourth in 1:55.3. The relay team comprised of juniors Abbie Dolan and Lauren Heller, and sophomores Carly Quast and Skylar Fore took third with a final time of 3:17.51. Dolan also earned a third-place finish in the 100 freestyle with her time of 48.83. Freshman Annie Wiese led the Irish divers, finishing fifth overall with a score total of 234.7. Notre Dame returns to action with a tri-meet versus Illinois and Iowa Jan. 11 in Champaign, Ill. VOLLEYBALL (16-11 OVERALL, 10-7 ACC) Notre Dame finished its home schedule with a 3-2 win over Louisville Nov. 16. Although it was Senior Day, it was a freshman that led the way for the Irish. Right-side hitter Sydney Bent led the team in both kills (19) and blocks (seven). The Irish had four players record double-digit digs in the match, including senior libero Ryann DeJarld with 26. Notre Dame finished the regular season Nov. 21 at Duke. — David McKinney Irish Roundup Senior forward Joe Wegwerth has already equaled his career highs for goals (seven) and assists (11) through just 12 contests. PHOTO COURTESY FIGHTING IRISH DIGITAL MEDIA